New music commissioned by King to be heard at thanksgiving service

The Edinburgh ceremony is a key part of Royal Week, with the King and Queen undertaking several engagements in Scotland.

The King has commissioned new music for a service in Edinburgh (PA) (PA Wire)

Five new pieces of music will be heard at an event in Edinburgh to mark the coronation of the King and Queen.

The pieces, including one composed in Gaelic, were commissioned by Charles for the national service of thanksgiving and dedication at St Giles’ Cathedral on Wednesday.

The ceremony is a key part of Royal Week, with the King and Queen undertaking several engagements in Scotland.

The new music will form part of what is described by Buckingham Palace as a rich mix at the service to reflect Scottish history and culture, with performers representative of contemporary Scotland.

Balmoral Flourishes, a new commission by composer Paul Mealor, will be performed by The State Trumpeters of the Household Cavalry to begin the service.

A Gaelic Psalm by Mealor, written especially for the service, will be sung by Joy Dunlop, in recognition of Scotland’s linguistic heritage.

A new arrangement of Scottish folk songs chosen by the King and arranged by Ayrshire-born composer Jay Capperauld will be performed by The Honours of Scotland Ensemble.

Capperauld, a graduate of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, is one of Scotland’s most distinguished young composers and holds the position of Associate Composer of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra.

The Honours of Scotland Ensemble is made up of musicians from the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and Scottish Ballet Orchestra.

The ensemble will join The Choir of St Giles’ Cathedral conducted by Master of the Music Michael Harris and the National Youth Choir of Scotland Chamber Choir, conducted by Mark Evans.

A new commission by Joanna Gill, A Song Of Thanksgiving And Dedication, set in Doric, which is spoken in the north east of Scotland, will be performed by Scottish mezzo-soprano singer and patron of the National Youth Choir of Scotland National Girls’ Choir Karen Cargill and instrumentalists and composers The Ayoub Sisters.

The piece was composed as a tribute to the Queen as Chancellor of the University of Aberdeen, of which Gill is a graduate.

Mealor said: “It is an incredible honour and indeed very moving to have been asked to contribute to The Honours of Scotland service.

“This ancient service stretches back centuries and to be able to add something new to it, in honour of the King and Queen is truly humbling.”

The ceremony involves a people’s procession of about 100 community groups collecting the honours from Edinburgh Castle.

The procession will then be escorted to the cathedral by the Royal Regiment of Scotland and its Shetland pony mascot, Corporal Cruachan IV, supported by cadet musicians from the combined cadet force pipes and drums.

Meanwhile, a royal procession will travel from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to the cathedral, with the public lining the Royal Mile to view both processions.

The Prince and Princess of Wales, known as the Duke and Duchess of Rothesay in Scotland, will be attending.

A 21-gun salute will fire from Edinburgh Castle at the end of the St Giles’ service, before the royal procession travels back to the palace.

The Stone of Destiny will be in the cathedral during the ceremony, and there will also be a fly-past by the Red Arrows following the event.